Well pipe support



p 41- I c. A. LUN-DEEN 2,257,120

WELL PIPE SUPPORT Filed 001:. 3, 1939 A 65 II v 6] llg'g/ 1 6f Cizesia mdeen e5 ea; 67 I BY ATTORNEYS Patented Sept. 30, 1941 WELL PIPE SUPPORT Chester A. Lundeen, Los Angeles, Calif., assignor to Byron Jackson 00., Huntington Park, Calif., a corporation of Delaware Application October 3, 1939, Serial No. 297,704

11 Claims.

This invention relates to pipe supports for supporting and handling pipe in wells, and is directed particularly to an improved latch mechanism for such devices.

Well pipe supports, and particularly elevators adapted for use in handling drill pipe, usually comprise two segmental sections pivotally interconnected at one side and provided with latch means for releasably clamping the segments about the pipe beneath a collar or upset at the upper end thereof. In order to preclude the possibility of inadvertent release of the latch means under load, it is sometimes desirable to provide auxiliary locking means for the latch. Both the main latch and the latch lock are preferably spring-pressed towards closed position in order to be self-closing when the elevator sections are closed about the pipe.

A principal object of this invention is to provide a pipe support having a novel and improved latch mechanism of the type having auxiliary locking means.

A further object is to provide a simplified latch mechanism of the type embodying a .main latch and an auxiliary latch lock, in which both the latchand the latch lock are-biased toward their latching positions by a common spring means.

A still further object of the invention is to provide an improved pivotal connection between the body and latch of a well pipe elevator.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following description of one embodiment and a modification thereof, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawing wherein:

Fig. 1 is a plan view of an elevator embodying the invention, with parts broken away substantially along the section line 1-! of Fig. 2 to disclose details of the latch mechanism in closed and locked position;

Fig. 2 is a view in front elevationof the elevator shown in Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a horizontal sectional view taken in the plane of section line l-l of Fig. 2, but showing the latch mechanism .with the latch lock in released position and the latch partially open;

Fig. 4 is a view similar to Fig. 3 but showing the latch in fully released position;

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary view in front elevation of a modified construction embodying the invention; and

Fig. 6 is a sectional view taken on line 66 of Fig. 2. i

In the embodiment of the invention illustrated novel latch mechanism has been shown as applied to an elevator of the so-called centerlatch type comprising a pair of symmetrical sections I and 2 pivotally connected at one side by a hinge pin 3 and having complementary semi-circular recesses 4 and 5 on their inner faces defining a pipe bore when the segments are swung into closed position. Each section is provided with a pair of upper and lower lugs or ears 6 and l defining elevator link receiving recesses 8 therebetween. I

A pair of horn handles 9 and ID are provided, one projecting forwardly from the upper portion of each elevator section, to enable the operator to manipulate the sections into open or closed position. A rear handle H may also be provided if desired, to enable a second operator to move the elevator bodily toward or away from the pipe.

As is customary in elevators of this type, the two pivoted section l and 2 are releasably latched about the pipe by cooperating latch elements on the respective sections on the side of the pipe opening opposite the hinge pin 3. A latch lug I5 is formed integral with the section 2, and is adapted to be engaged by a latch member, generally designated 16, pivotally mounted on the section I as by a pivot pin IT. The latch member in this form of the invention is of the q U-shaped or stirrup type adapted to fully emtheir free ends.

The elevator shown in Figs. 1 and 2 is of the type generally known as external upset, having a downwardly tapered seat 25 in the upper portion of the pipe bore, for engagement with an external upset on the pipe. Because of the tapered seat, a considerable proportion of the weight of the pipe is converted into a radial spreading force tending to open the elevator. This force is sustained by the latch, and necessarily subjects the latch pivot pin to shearing stresses of great magnitude. In order to most effectively distribute this shearing stress and thereby reduce the stress on any given section of the pin, I have provided an upper pair of hinge lugs 26 and 21 and a lower pair 28 and 29 on the body section I, the lugs of each pair being spaced apart only sufficiently to accommodate the hinge lugs 2| and 22 on the latch. Four shear points are thus provided, and. the pivot pin is adein Figs. 1 to 4 of the accompanying drawing, the 5 q y pp d by the ge lugs on opposite sides of each shear point so that no bending moments are set up.

, The latch lug I5 and the latch I6 are provided with cooperating arcuate latching faces SI and 32 respectively (Fig. 4), struck on a radius from the pivotal axis of the pivot pin I! as a center. Inasmuch as thesefaces extend substantially radiallytoward the hinge pin 3, and hence substantially at right angles to the direction of initial separating movement of the sections I and 2, the spreading force exerted on the tapered seat by the weight of the pipe has no tendency to release the latch I6 from the latch lug I5. In order to safeguard against accidental opening of the latch as the result of a sudden jar and is adapted to engage the cam 46 to limit the pivotal movement of the locking member in closing direction. Clockwise pivotal movement of the locking finger about its pivot pin M, is limited by engagement of the back of the locking finger with the wall 52 of the recess in the latch portion i 8, as is most clearly shown in Fig. 3. .A stop 53 is formed on the cam member 45 and is adaptor blow applied to the elevator, a latch lock is provided. As most clearly shown in Figs. 1, 3 and 4, the latch lock comprises a locking finger 33 pivotally mounted on the latch I6 and engaging an abutment 34 formed on the latch lug I5. The finger-.3 and abutment 34 havecooperating arcuatefaces 35 and 36 respectively (Fig. 4) which are preferably struck on a radiusfrom closing direction in order to' release the locking finger. It will be observed from hub portion extending vertically between the arms I9 and 20 'of the latch IE and pivotally mountedthereonfon a pivot: pin M. An operatinglever; or handle 42 is also formed integral with the'hub 40 and the locking finger 33 and,

ina manner which will be fully described hereinafter,.may be manipulated to first release the 'locking'finger from the abutment 34 and thereafter swing the latch I6 clear of the latch lug I5.

It is highly desirable that both the latch and the auxiliary lock be self-closing, and that they be yieldably maintained in closed positions, as by spring means. A salient feature of this invention is the novelarrangement whereby a' single:

spring acts onboth the latch and the latch lock to cause them both to automatically close when;

Fig. 2 that the locking finger 33'is formed integral with an elongated ed to engage the body section I to limit clockwise pivotal movement of the cam and thus limit the opening movement of the latch I6. A shoulder 5 3 formed on the latch I6 engages the wall of the body section I to limit the pivotal movement of the latch in closing direction.

Referring to Fig.- 2, it will be observed that the latch pivot pin IT is composed of two separate sections abutting each other just below the hinge the elevator sectionsare closed about a pipe, and r to exert force against both of these members to yieldably maintain them in, closed position.

It will be observed most clearly from Fig. 2 that the hub 40 of the latch lock is freely jcurnaled on its pivot pin 4 I andthat the latch I5 is freely.

journaled on its pivot pin I'I. A torsion spring 45 is mounted'on. the pin I! with its upperendQ wardly of. the pivot pin 4I so that the spring 45,

acting through the cam 46, urges the locking finger in a counterclockwise direction into closed position. Furthermore; by reason of th fact that the locking .fingeris mounted on the latch I6, the spring also urges the latch in a counterclockwisedirection into closed position.

-. A'stop Si is formed on the, locking .memben each pin of bendingstresses which would be set up in a single pin as the result of slightmisalignment'of the upper and lower sets of hinge,"

lugs. Even though these lugs were initially perfectly aligned, any slight inequality in wear asbetween the two sets of. lugs would impose bending strains on a single pin extending through all six lugs... The separate pins, however, may

adjust themselves independently of eachto compensate for wear. 7

The operation of the latch mechanism will be understood from the foregoing description.

other While the body sections I and 2 are spread apart to admit a pipe into the bore 4, 5, the latchwill obviously occupy the same position, relative to the body section I on which it is pivotally mounted, as when the elevator is'clcsed about a pipe and the latch is in engagement with the 7 lug I5. As the sections are closed about the pipe, the curved nose portion ofv the latch engages the outwardly curved face of the lug I5 and is cammed outwardly against the action of the tor sion spring, the latch and latchlockassuming the positions shown in Fig. 4.. As the latch portion iBpasses over the latchlug'and is pivoted ins: wardly by the spring; the locking finger33. en;

gages the outer face of the abutment 34'andis cammed to the right, into the positionshown in Fig. 3. Upon further inward movement of the latch, the locking fingerclears the abutment-34" and is swung in a counterclockwise direction about its pivot pin 4| by the pressure. of thecam 4t on the cam surface48. The parts thusassume the fully latched and locked'position shown inFig. 1. i

When it isdesired to open the elevator to releasejit from the pipe, the operator graspsthe' handle 42 and swings it to the left, against the action of the spring, to move the locking finger 33 out from behind the abutment 34. Upon engagement of the rear wall of the locking finger with the Wall 52- on the latch,- further pivotal movement of the locking finger about its pivot 4! is arrested, and continued swinging of the handle 42 to the left causes the locking fingerj and: the latch to swing as a .unit about thelatch pivot-pin I 'I, ,When;-the;leg;portion I8 of the,

latch'has cleared the lug t5, the stop 53 on the cam '46 engages the body section I, thus arresting the pivotal movement of the latch about the pivot pin l1. Thereafter continued swinging of the handle 42 to the left causes the body section I to swing outwardly about the hinge pin 3 and away from the pipe.

. In Fig. 5 I have shown the novel latch mechanism as applied to a T-head latch. Except for the specific shape of the main latch member and certain other minor structural differences, the two forms are substantially identical, and hence primed reference numerals will be used to designate parts corresponding to the parts of the first-described form designated by similar unprimed reference numerals. The latch I6 is of slightly modified T-head construction, comprising a T-head l8 adapted to engage a pair of vertically spaced latch lugs I 5' and I5 formed integral with the body section 2'. The latch is pivotally mounted on the body section I on a latch pivot pin H, which is journaled in hinge lugs 27', 28, 29. Whereas the usual T-head latch is formed with a single centrally disposed hinge lug, in the instant case the lug is bifurcated to provide space for mounting the cam member 46 on the pivot pin. ll. There is thus formed on the latch a pair of upper and lower hing lugs 2| and 22 which are connected to the T-head by spaced arms l9 and 29'. A locking member 33', which is identical in all essential respects with the locking finger 33 of Figs. 1 to 4, is pivotally mounted on a pin 4! extending between the arms l9 and 20'.

As in the previously described embodiment, the cam 46' is non-rotatably secured to the latch pivot pin H by a transverse pin 41', and the pivot pin is urged in a counterclockwise direction, as viewed from above, by a torsion spring 45. The cam 46 has a cam finger engaging a cam surface on the operating lever 42' formed integral with the locking member 33', whereby the looking member and the latch [6' are urged toward closed position.

The operative relationship of the parts and the mode of operation of the embodiment shown in Fig. 5 are identical with that shown in Figs. 1 to 4, and hence further description thereof is deemed unnecessary.

Referring once more to Figs. 1, 2 and 6, I have provided a novel and simple but effective detachable connection between the elevator ears 6 and the elevator link retaining blocks 6|. As shown in Fig. 2, the blocks 6| are permanently pivotally attached to the lower ears I, as by rivets, and are detachably secured to the upper ears to permit them to be swung outwardly to enable the elevator links to be inserted in or removed from the recesses 8. As shown most clearly in Fig. 6, the detachable connection is formedby the .provision of a pair of spaced lugs 62, 63 on each ear 6, between which is disposed a lug 64 on the upper end of the retainer block 6!. The lugs are provided with aligned bores into which is inserted a plain cylindrical pin 65. The pin bore does not extend entirely through the lug 63, but is reduced at its outer end at 66 to provide a shoulder 61 against which the adjacent end of the pin abuts. The reduced bore 66 permits escape of any foreign matter which may have become lodged in the lugs, and provides access of a drift pin for driving out the pin 65. It is obvious that the pin 65 must be inserted through the lug 62, and is retained within the aligned bores by a removable closure such as a pipe plug 68 threaded into a boss formed on the lug 62. Both the pin and its retaining means are thus wholly enclosed within the ear '6, with no protruding parts subject to being broken off or accidentally loosened.

It will be observed from Fig. 1 that the operating handle 42 is disposed directly beneath the handle 10 and is thus protected against being accidentally struck from above. It will be understood that, if preferred, a pair of loop handles as in Fig. 5 may be used in lieu of the horn handles shown in Figs. 1 and 2, thus protecting the operating handle from the front and below as well as from above.

While I have shown the novel latch mechanism as applied to a center latch type of elevator, it will be understood that it is equally applicable to other types of elevators, such, for instance, as a side door elevator. Also, as illustrated in Fig. 5, it is not limited in its application to elevators for handling external upset pipe, but is equally applicable to collar-type elevators'as well as to slip elevators and other sectional supporting devices adapted to be latched about drill pipe, well casing, or tubing.

I claim:

1. In an elevator comprising a pair of pipeengaging body members pivotally connected at one end and adapted to be releasably latched together at their free ends: latch mechanism therefor comprising a pair of angularly related shoulders on one of said members; a latch member pivotally mounted on the other of said members and adapted to engage one of said shoulders; a locking member pivotally mounted on said latch member and adapted to engage the other of said shoulders; and spring means acting between said other body member and said locking member and yieldingly urging the latter into engagement with the second-mentioned shoulder, said spring means also urging said latch member into engagement with said first-mentioned shoulder through the pivotal mounting of the locking member on the latch member. 1

2. In a well pipe supporting device comprising a pair of pipe-engaging body members pivotally interconnected at one end and adapted to be releasably latched together at their free ends, latch means comprising: a shoulder formed on one member; a latch member pivotally mounted on the other body member and adapted to engage said shoulder; a second shoulder formed on said one member; a locking member pivotally mounted on said latch member and adapted to engage said second shoulder; and common spring-pressed means pivotally mounted on said other member on the pivotal axis of said latch member and operatively associated with said latch member, and said locking member for yieldingly urging both said latch member and said'locking member into engagement with their respective shoulders when said body members are closed about a pipe.

3. In a well pipe support comprising a pair of pipe-engaging body members pivotally interconnected at one end and adaptedto be releasably latched together at their free ends, latch means for releasably latching said free ends together comprising: a shoulder formed on one member; a latch member pivotally mounted on the other member and adapted to engage said shoulder;

latch member and said locking member into j engage ent with their" respective shoulders comprisinga spring-pressed member pivotally mounted on said other bodymember.

, 4. In a well pipe support comprising a'pair of pipe-engaging body members pivotally interconnectdat one end and'adapted to be rele'asably latched together attheirfree ends, latch means for releasably latching said 'free ends together andcomprising: a shoulder on one member and alatch pivotally mounted on the other member and adapted to engage said shoulder; lock means for releasably locking said latch to said shoulder and comprising a second shoulder on said one 3 open positions in combination with means for i releasablylatching said members in closed posi tion, the latching means which comprises: a main latch pivotallymounted on the free end of one ofsaid members for horizontal swinging move ment toward andaway from the free end of the pins individual to each of said pairs of pivot ears and interconnecting them with the"'associated pivot ear' on the one member, one of said pivot pins being freelyrotatable relative to its asso-' ciated pivot ears, a second body member'hinged to saidfirst body member and having a latch shoulder thereon adapted to'be engaged byia latch surface on said latching'member, another of said pivot pins being operatively connected with said latch member and being springpressed in a direction to yieldingly urge said latch mem-' her into engagement with said latch shoulder.

Q8. An elevator comprising: a first body member adapted to in" part encircle'a pipe, a latch member, one of said members having upper and lower vertically aligned pairs of hinge lugs and the other member having an upper hinge lug disposed between the upper pair of hinge lugs on the one member, and-having a lower hinge lug disposed between the lower pair of hinge lugs on said one member, hingepin means interconnecting the hinge lugs on one member with those on the other member, a second body member hinged to said first body member and cooperating therewith to encircle a pipe, said second body member having a latch shoulder thereon; and said latch member having a latching surface adapted to engage said shoulder.

9. An elevator as set forth in claim 8, in'which said hinge pin'meanscomprises an upper hinge pin'interconnecting said upper hinge lugs and a other membena shoulder on saidother member adapted to be engaged by 'said latch when the 'latter is closed,.an auxiliary latch supported by said first-mentioned member, a second shoulder on said other member angularly disposed with respect to said first-mentioned shoulder and adapted to be engaged by said auxiliary latch to maintain said main latch in closed position, and common spring means interposed between said other body member and both said latch and said locking member for yieldingly urging both said main latch and said auxiliary latch toward their closed positions. V r 1 '6. A well pipe support comprising: a first body member adapted to in part encircle a pipe, a latch'member, and means for pivotally attaching it to said first body member, said means including upper and lower vertically aligned pairs of pivot ears formed on one of said members, and upper and lower pivot ears on the other of said members, each of the latter ears being disposed between a pair of ears ,onthe one'member, a pair of pivot pins each interconnectingone of said pair of ears tofthe ear disposed thereb etwe'en, altorsionspring mounted one one of said pins and operatively connected thereto, a cam meme ber non-rotatably mounted on said one pin, a second bodyrmember hinged to said first body member and cooperating therewith to encirclea pipe, a latch shoulder on said second body member, andan operative connection between said cam member and said latch member whereby said latchmember is yieldingly urged by said spring into latching relation with said latch shoulder. V e

,7. A'well pipe support comprising: a first body member adapted to in part encircle a pipe, a latch member pivotally mounted on said body member, one of said members having aligned pivot ears, and the other having pairs of aligned pivot jears between which said aligned pivot ears I of the one member are disposed, separate pivot separate lower hinge pin interconnecting said lower hinge lugs.

10; In an elevator comprising a pair of pipeengaging body members pivotally connected at one end and adapted to be releasably latched together at their free ends; latch mechanism therefor, comprising: a pair of angularly disposed shoulders on one of said members; a latch member pivotally mounted on the other of said members and adapted to engage one of said shouldersr a locking member pivotally mounted on said latch member and adapted to engage the other of said shoulders, said locking member having a cam surface thereon; a cam member'pivotally mounted on said other body member and having a cam surface engageable with said first-men tioned cam surface, and spring means yieldably urging said cam member about-its pivotal axis in a'direction to exert pressure on said locking member urging it into engagement with the other said shoulder, a

11. In an elevator comprising a pair of pipe engaging body members pivotally connected at one end and adapted to bereleasably latched.

together at their free ends, latch mechanism therefor comprising: a pair of angularly disposed shoulders on one of said members; a latch member; means including a pivot pin journaled in said other body member and in said latch member for pivotally supporting said latch member for rocking movement into-and out of engagement with one of saidshoulders; a locking member pivotally mounted on said latch member for rock 7 CHESTER A. LUnDE N. p 

